Separated
by StarvingLunatic
Summary: AU. Kikyo and Sesshomaru have broken up. Will they come to their senses and get back together?
1. Chapter 1

I don't own these characters.

This is an AU, pretty much present day.

Separated

Kikyo sat down at the same outside table at the same café as she had for many years. She used to come to the café often with Sesshomaru, mostly because it was located very close to his office. She actually could see his office from her seat. The thought of his office caused her to glance up briefly and spot his window. She sighed longingly.

Many of her friends and associates that knew where she took her lunch break did not think that it was healthy behavior. After all, she had broken up with Sesshomaru over a year ago. They seemed to think that she had not moved on because of her afternoon dining habit.

She had broken up with Sesshomaru last year because they had both been focusing so hard on their careers that it just did not seem plausible for them to focus on each other. They floated by each other in their condo more often than not back when they were together. They actually used to get surprised when they finally noticed each other, even if they had both been home for hours with each other. They were not really in a relationship with each other at the time, so she had proposed that they should separate until they got their lives in an order that they desired.

Sesshomaru had not looked very pleased with the idea. It would have been difficult for others to notice, but after being with him for so long, she knew all of his little reactions. He had stared at her for a long while; she was not sure what had gone through his mind, but she could tell that the notions were not pleasant to him. He eventually frowned and grunted what sounded like an agreement.

Their breakup had not been messy in any way that most people typically associated with such things. They barely discussed it after they concurred on the matter. He had even left her the condo; he would rather be the one searching for a new place to live if they were going to be a part than having his precious Kikyo going through the trouble of doing such a thing. He also preferred knowing that she was some place safe and secure, especially while her mind had been trying to focus on a specific task, namely her job and her research. He was a good man and she knew that, and many ladies that she knew thought that she was crazy for giving him up. _Maybe they were right_, she considered.

Now that she had her life in order, all she did was miss the one component that had stood in her way, sort of anyway. He had not stood in her way, but trying to be there for him and trying to get her career to where she wished it to be was a burden; it was the same for him, even though he did not admit it. But, now, she missed that. She missed him. She missed being an "us."

Sesshomaru was not perfect by any stretch of the imagination; well, by any stretch of her imagination, anyway. Of course, Sesshomaru swore that he was perfection. Many women seemed to think that he was the greatest catch of all time and she knew that he was the envy of many men, human and demon alike. She accepted him for who and what he was and did not request that he try to be something he was not. He returned the favor to a point.

While Kikyo would ignore what women thought of Sesshomaru, even when they were throwing themselves at him, he could not do the same in regards to her. The silver-haired demon was possessive of Kikyo to the point of coming to blows with men for their crime of looking at her. She was aware that his behavior was due in part to his demon nature, but he had better control over himself than he generally showed when she was involved. But, other than that, she did not mind much of his behavior. He was still a good man and she knew that many people agreed with notion considering the fact that she had lost several so-called friends because they dared to approach him when they found out that he was now single.

It was not hard for Kikyo to find out that "friends" of hers had gone after Sesshomaru, even though she did not speak him to get the information right from him. She and Sesshomaru had cut off communication even before they ended their relationship; in fact, it was one of the reasons that she cited when explaining why they should break up. Other people would tell her about her "friends" behavior or she would just overhear the gossip that someone had gone out on a date with Sesshomaru. She did not know any of the details behind the dates because she had not heard anyone talking about anything beyond the dates, which she was thankful for.

She suspected that her demon prince had been with other women in the past year, but she would prefer not knowing the details behind the acts. She was not sure what she might do if she heard someone speaking about her Sessho in bed, but she was certain that her reaction would be violent, either vomiting or hitting that woman that dared to touch her Sessho. After all, he was still the love of her life, even if she had suggested that they part ways for an undetermined amount of time.

As a rational and pragmatic woman, Kikyo knew that Sesshomaru had been with other women for the simple fact that he would want to keep up appearances. He liked to be perceived in a certain way that reflected his status. As a demon noble, a prince at that, he would be expected to have a woman on his arm almost whenever he stepped out of his hotel room. She could not hold it against him because she knew how he was, but she tried her best to not think about it. Sure, she was not with him anymore, but she disliked the idea of someone else being with him. _He is still mine, even if we are apart … or at least my heart seems to think so_.

She could not help not wanting someone else to have Sesshomaru. He was the only man that she had ever known. They had been together since high school, so it was hard for her to let go. They had been together for roughly ten years. She knew people that broke up with spouses, or mates when it came to demons, after brief periods together and they always wanted to know her secret to staying with Sesshomaru so long. She could not help them out because she did not know the secret. There was no secret as far as she was concerned.

She and Sesshomaru merely fit nicely together like pieces in a puzzle. They could look at each other and without speaking any words, pretty much know what they other was thinking, provided the thoughts were not too off-the-wall. A glance could tell them what the other needed or wanted, even if the other was unaware of those things. They treated each other like they wanted to be treated. They respected each other deeply and they loved each other in a way that many people did not seem to comprehend. _Our emotions were so focused and quiet most people didn't believe they were even there, despite how long we were together_.

Kikyo loved Sesshomaru because she was used to him. Seeing her demon prince used to be bring her a joy that most women did not feel after a while with their respective mates. Every glimpse of him sparked light and love within her. His presence brought her comfort and she relaxed when having an in-depth conversation with him, which was not something that she did often with other people. Just thinking of him set her at ease while increasing her heartbeat ever so lightly. Whenever he touched her, even in the simplest manner, she felt like everything was right in the world. Her love went beyond what she noticed many other people associated with love, namely physical ecstasy.

She recalled when people found out that she broke up with Sesshomaru and they always wanted to know what went wrong. They assumed that it had something to do with sex almost all of the time, but she was certain that nothing went wrong. They had just broken up; it was as simple as that.

She never told anyone about her sex life with Sesshomaru because she did not think that was anyone's business. Though she had never experienced another man, she was certain that Sesshomaru was a fantastic lover. He was gentle with her when need be or when the request was made. He always took her into consideration and he always made sure that she got as much enjoyment out of the act as he did.

Once the couple had broken up, two things happened. First of all, her father had outwardly rejoiced. She was stunned that the man did not throw a party when he found out that she was no longer dating the demon prince. He never liked Sesshomaru; he especially did not like the fact that the demon had been dating his little girl. He did not think that Sesshomaru was a good influence on her daughter and he was glad that the couple had gone their separate ways. Kikyo had not been surprised by that reaction because she had always known that her father disliked Sesshomaru.

Her father had a dislike of demons in general, but Sesshomaru got special attention from the time that he began pursuing Kikyo up until the time that she had broken things off with Sesshomaru. They came from a family that had a long history fighting against demons and even though that was not done nowadays since everyone was so civil, their loathing of demons still held on. She even had some prejudices toward demons before Sesshomaru came into her life. So, she had expected her father to hate him and she doubted that his opinion of Sesshomaru would ever change, not that it mattered now.

Her father still held on to his loathing of Sesshomaru and he made it a point to tell her how glad that he was when they saw it each other that she had come to her senses and gotten rid of that demon. He always said that he did not know what had gotten into her to even date Sesshomaru. He had thought that she lost her mind all of those years ago when she had first started going out with Sesshomaru. He actually used to threaten to transfer her from school when Sesshomaru used to call the house, trying to get her to talk to him before they began dating or when they had started going out.

The second thing that happened when she broke up with Sesshomaru was that a few of her friends began insisting that she could now date. She had never dated before, but she did not see why they would suggest such a thing. She split up with Sesshomaru to focus on her career, not to see other men; yet, she eventually found herself doing just that. She had quickly learned that it was better that she did not date because she did not seem to have very much luck with men; she often joked with herself that the gods had been looking out for her when they delivered Sesshomaru into her life. The funny thing was that if it had been up to her, she would not have even been involved with Sesshomaru.

She had begun dating because she just could not find it in herself to call Sesshomaru and say that she wanted to get back together with him. It seemed selfish to get in contact with him after her life was in order and tell him to come back, as if he were a puppy that she could send away and call back whenever she felt it was necessary. Besides, she actually considered that she might find someone that complemented her as much as he did; she was so very wrong there, very, very wrong.

The first person that she had dated was the brother of a colleague of hers, Jakotsu. Jakotsu was an interesting fellow in the sociology department of the university where she worked. She was a history and political science professor while Jakotsu was a sociology professor. He beamed, as he had a habit of doing, while telling her about his brother, a high-powered medical doctor that he swore to the heavens and back she would get along with fabulously. He failed to mention that his brother was hemophobic and psychotic; other than that, Suikotsu was a fine gentleman, but the latter was a hard thing to get over.

Kikyo stopped seeing the doctor, Suikotsu, after she figured out that he was mentally unstable because she was not looking to put herself in a bad situation. She could just tell that if she stayed with him nothing good was going to come of it. She explained to him just that and he seemed to take it pretty well. There was more to her breaking up with him than the fact that he was mentally imbalanced.

There was the fact that Suikotsu, while a grand young man, he was not Sesshomaru. Every time that she was with Suikotsu, she mentally compared him to her demon prince. His build was different from Sesshomaru's, making embracing him a different experience than what she was used to and she did not equate different with better. Everything about him was just different from what she was used to and she finally figured out that everything about him was different from what she wanted, and yet she pressed on.

The next male that Kikyo found herself seeing was even more of a disaster. She only went out with him twice to discover that he was just not right in some way that she was not going to stick around to figure out. There was something in his scarlet eyes that told her to get away from him while she could and she had done just that.

His name was Naraku and she was upset with herself for getting involved with him. Sometimes, he still just randomly called her, trying to make a date with her, but she would always quickly think of some excuse to not talk with him. He occasionally asked her disturbing questions when he called her, like what she was wearing before she managed to hang up on him, but she was not too worried about him. She believed that if he tried anything stupid, she would be able to handle him.

She had not seen Naraku for months now, but he did make her reconsider the whole "dating" thing. She was not looking to run into another man, demon, or hanyou which Naraku was, like the crimson-eyed male. She did not want to end up putting herself in a position that she did not want to be in.

She had gone out with a couple more men, but no one was worth noting. They were not Sesshomaru, simple as that. She had easily given up on trying to find a new man because she realized that there was only one male for her: her demon prince, Sesshomaru. He was the one that she wanted and she pretty much always knew that, despite trying to convince herself otherwise.

Kikyo had actually never removed any of Sesshomaru's pictures from around the condo, not that they had had many. She left many of his things that he had forgotten at their home right where he left them; she even dusted them to keep them clean. She just did not want to move anything, as if he was going to come back and she wanted everything just the way that he recalled it. But, it had been a year and he had not returned. She still enjoyed looking at his photos around the apartment.

Sesshomaru always looked so adorably miserable whenever he had his picture taken. She actually did not look too happy when taking pictures, either. People often told them that they took "execution photos," in other words it was like they were going to be murdered once the photos were done, even when they took pictures together. Kikyo sometimes put on a small smile when she took a photo with Sesshomaru, but he never smiled, no matter the circumstances.

They had never been considered a "cute" couple, even when they first hooked up in high school. They were a couple that made sense to most people now, but when they first got together, it had been a complete mystery to their classmates and teachers as the reasoning behind the hookup. Sesshomaru was a demon from a noble family and she was a human from a family with spiritual powers and a past history for slaying demons; such a thing now was not considered legal.

Kikyo had been likable back in high school while most people had and still did consider Sesshomaru to be an arrogant bastard on a good day; on a bad day, they figured that Kikyo would have all the legal backing in the world if she decided to blast him into dust with her spiritual powers. Back then, people that knew Sesshomaru felt sorry for her when she started going out with him.

Many girls had actually been jealous of Kikyo in high school when she landed Sesshomaru; well, they looked at it as landed, but she would always look at it as trapped and he had been the one that trapped her. She had gotten so many dirty looks from females back then; even now, she still got looks from females that were envious that she had Sesshomaru, she guessed. Many they were just jealous that they did not have the chance to lie underneath him or something to that effect, she considered. She, of course, wanted him for so much more.

People that saw beyond Sesshomaru's pretty face did not think that Kikyo deserved the fate of having to date the haughty demon. They did not think that he would treat her properly. Some of them even feared for her safety because it was known how impatient he could be. It did not help matters that it was well known that he was a very powerful demon, too.

On the outside world, after graduating and things, Sesshomaru and Kikyo had come to be known as a sophisticated couple. They were a couple that other well-to-do couples tried to mimic. They were a couple that could set a trend … if they ever thought to do so, but they were both too aloof for that.

Now, even though people attempted to be like them, they were still viewed as an oddly matched couple because she was a human and he was a demon. It was a very rare match even in modern times. Their breakup had been big news in many sectors of the world, demon society, high society in general, the intellectual realm, and the business world; they were both involved or associated with each area in someway. And, while many thought the breakup was logical, it was still interesting because Sesshomaru and Kikyo were the "it" couple.

Separated, the pair was a hot commodity, even though they both hated the attention. Reporters dared to try to interview them on the matter; Kikyo ignored the people, which she was very good at, while Sesshomaru all but attacked people. It had been an interesting first few weeks alone because of the attention, but eventually the reporters found another story and ceased their focus on the former couple.

It had not taken Kikyo long after the breakup to realize that she was lonely, even though she was focusing on her career. There were certain things that left with Sesshomaru that had not occurred to her when she proposed the idea. She guessed that she had taken him for granted for ten years since she had not thought about the things that would be gone once he was no longer there. One of the biggest things that she noticed when Sesshomaru left was how large their bed was. To that day, she could not get comfortable in their huge bed and that was far from all. She still accidentally made coffee for two in the morning; the same could be said when she made tea and she went as far as pouring the second cup before she recollected that Sesshomaru was not there. She still did many little things that she used to do when Sesshomaru was there, as if he were still there.

She concluded a while ago that her subconscious was attempting to tell her something and it would do her well to listen. She was not getting anywhere by persisting in remaining as she was. She obviously wanted her prince back. She just was not sure if he wanted her back.

There was always the chance that Sesshomaru was enjoying his existence was a bachelor or that he was with someone else now. He was handsome, charming in a strange way, incredibly rich in his own right, and of demon nobility. A demoness would undoubtedly want to snatch him up as quickly as possible; human females were probably looking to snatch him up if they could, but he was not very attracted to humans. Kikyo had been the exception. She might have lost him to someone by now, she considered.

She sighed at that thought, but life was not about feeling sorry for herself or considering "what if." She needed to take some sort of action to move on with her life in some manner. She decided that it was time for her to put the ball in Sesshomaru's court instead of assuming things about him. She pulled out her cell phone and called his number. He did not answer; she guessed that he was either busy or actually not taking her calls, which was a frightening thought. She had no problem with leaving a message.

"If you want to, come home," Kikyo plainly said to his voicemail and that was all. It was a bit surprising that a woman who seldom spoke and when she did, it was usually only the words necessary to get her point across was actually a renowned university professor and often gave speeches all over the country.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Sesshomaru thinks about the relationship that he had with Kikyo.


	2. Chapter 2

I don't own these characters.

Chapter 2

Sesshomaru was staring out of his office window when his cell phone began ringing. He sighed under his breath, disliking the noise distracting him from his lunchtime hobby. He did not bother to check to see who it was that was calling him. In fact, he did not even look at the phone. He just wanted to stare at his Kikyo and nothing would stop him from doing so.

Yes, he was watching Kikyo at the café that was close to his office building. He was on a high floor, but he could tell that it was her even from the distance. It went beyond the fact that he was a demon; his eyesight was spectacular, but there was also the fact that he would know the true Kikyo in a sea of clones from ten times the distance. He just knew his woman, which was why he knew to be by his window during lunch.

Sesshomaru remembered when he used to meet his woman at the little café. She would always get there before he did and offer him a small smile as a greeting once he showed up. Sometimes, he managed to return her smile with one of his own. She would always have tea, as if she was health conscious in any way, and then she would have a cheeseburger or an exceptionally messy bowl of buffalo wings, yet she would manage to remain immaculate while eating them. Things like that about her amused him.

Technically, he was not much better than she was when it came to his diet and she was aware of that because she was very familiar with demon cuisine. So, he might tease her a bit about her meal, but she knew that he was having the demon equivalent of whatever she was having. They were both secretly junk food addicts. He missed sitting down there with her, just being with her and sharing their clandestine habits that no one else on the planet knew about.

Ever since they had ended their relationship, he had gone out looking for, well, another Kikyo as far as he could tell. The problem was that she was the only Kikyo in all of existence as far as he could tell. It was what his search had proven, anyway. Not that he was surprised to find that she was the only Kikyo in the universe.

He had gone out with females, human and demon alike, that were beautiful, first and foremost. But, none of them matched Kikyo's subtle, almost somber type of beauty. They were glamorous, glitzy, and some were subtle, but none of them had the eerie, melancholic beauty that seemed to be unique to his Kikyo. It was not even that she was sorrowful in any manner; she just had an exclusive look to her that made it seem as if the world would soon come to an end and she was the only one that knew. He did not know why she looked that way; she was not even aware that she had such a look to her, but she did.

He never thought much on the way Kikyo looked until he started searching for someone like her. Of course, he had noticed that she was lovely with both her enchanting face and her enthralling figure, but he never noticed that the look was hers and hers alone. It never occurred to him that she even had a type of beauty until he started picturing her in his mind to compare her to other females. She was a stunning creature and no other woman matched her in his opinion.

He then started in on intellectuals since he could not find anyone with her exact look. After all, his Kikyo was more than just a pretty face; she was brilliant on so many levels, so he was obviously attracted to her mind and desired to have someone with just as sharp a intellect. It turned out that Kikyo had a patent on her particular brand of intellect, which spanned several subjects, but mostly knowledge of the human world, the demon world, and how the two interacted with each other not just now, but also in the past. He had yet to meet another person, let alone a single dateable female, that held that combination of knowledge. And, even if he ever did, there would still be other requirements like knowing literature, politics, extensive medical science, and a vast amount of history of both the human and demon world. He had continued his search anyway; he did not have another option in his thinking.

"Hey, Sesshomaru, what are you doing?" Naraku asked as he entered the dog demon's office.

The demon lord frowned; he had forgotten to shut his door to keep out the riff-raff that roamed the building. He worked with Naraku; the half-demon's office was right down the hall. It was unfortunate in both of their opinions considering that they hated each other with a silent passion. Sesshomaru had several reasons to dislike the hanyou and all Naraku could do was return the favor since he knew that there was no way for him to ever be friends with the dog demon.

Sesshomaru was well aware that Naraku had gone out with Kikyo once. Before that incident, he mostly ignored Naraku or acted like he did not exist. Naraku was beyond background to Sesshomaru. He could not muster the emotion to detest the hanyou until the bastard creature went after Kikyo.

He was not too clear on the details on how the two met and he really would rather not know because he thought that it would led him to believe that Naraku was stalking his woman. After all, he knew that Naraku and Kikyo did not have the same taste in anything. As far as he knew, though, they had run into each other on the street and somehow Naraku managed to chat her up; Sesshomaru had been keeping an eye on Kikyo and he was glad that he was. He did not want her mingling with too many suspicious males, like Naraku and just about any other guy in his opinion.

The golden-eyed demon just disliked the idea of anyone else touching Kikyo, so he watched and made sure that no one did touch her. Now, he knew that it was a bit hypocritical of him since he had his way with a number of women through out the year, but in his mind, it was different for him to be with someone and for her to be with someone. He had unofficially claimed her a long time ago and no one else had better try planting his flag there, so to speak, or there would be heavy consequences and repercussions.

"What's got your attention so badly that you couldn't even be bothered to give me that royal glare?" the hanyou commented in a mocking tone. Sesshomaru, indeed, had not bothered to look upon the wretched half-breed.

Naraku went to the window and tried to see what Sesshomaru was focusing on. He spotted Kikyo rather quickly and he chuckled. The laugh was strange, almost ominous and bordering on sick.

Sesshomaru failed to see what was so amusing, but he did not bother with asking; he would rather not know how the half-demon's mind works. He also failed to see why Naraku was in his office and unless that was explained or fixed soon, he might be forced to make the half-demon leave. There was only so much disrespect that he was willing to take.

"You're looking at that one, aren't you? You shouldn't bother. She's mine," Naraku declared with a boastful smile.

Sesshomaru frowned deeper; he hated to hear someone claim her, apparently, even if it was a blatant and outrageous lie. There was a possibility that Naraku was deluded. The noble knew that Kikyo was nothing to Naraku and had not been near the crimson-eyed male in months. His Kikyo would not bother with such an annoying, listless, useless half-demon unless she pitied him. If she had one failing, it was that her heart was too big, which caused her to sympathize with the most pathetic of fools, like Naraku.

Naraku was a man with no morals, breeding, or anything else that would make a person consider respecting him or even conversing with him beyond any necessary exchange. He had no code in living his life and lived a more retched existence than a thieving vagabond in Sesshomaru's opinion. The shameful half-breed was probably lucky to have the job that he did and he had probably gotten that through nepotism, not that Sesshomaru could be certain of that claim. All Sesshomaru knew was that the moronic hanyou had better stay away from his beloved or there were going to be some serious problems.

Suddenly, the person of interest – Kikyo – rose from her seat; Sesshomaru knew that she to get to an undergraduate class soon. Naraku did not know such information, but he thankfully left now that there was nothing to look at; not that Sesshomaru liked Naraku ogling his Kikyo. If only he was allowed to shed blood in the building, Sesshomaru would rip Naraku apart into tiny little pieces, but with such a high demon population there were strict regulations in place to keep duels to the death from happening.

Sesshomaru actually had no problem with taking men outside to teach them to keep their eyes and other body parts off of Kikyo. He had been that way since before they first began going out and he had taken many men down; they were typically demons because it was not as serious an offense as long as it was between two demons because it went to a demon court and they were much more understanding of him trying crush a male for eyeing his woman. There was actually nothing very inappropriate about his behavior in demon society, but Kikyo often scolded him anyway about the way he acted, even back when they in high school. She had been quite a thing back then; a creature that he had accidentally become enchanted by.

She had been one of literally a handful of girls that showed absolutely no interest in him in high school, which he did not like for some reason. It was not like she was someone of importance and he required her attention, but he still disliked that she ignored him. Maybe it was just because he was the mighty Sesshomaru, the heir to his whole family and his father's lands. He was perfection. He always deserved everyone's attention, even if he would not return the favor. Everything about him demanded everyone's attention, hers included. _She was not special_; he had silently fumed back then.

So, he had made it his mission to get her to want him like all of the other giddy females of their school, but she typically appeared annoyed with his presence whenever he was around her. And that was if she showed any sort of emotion at all. She never smiled when he was around, yet she smiled with others. It was something that he noticed and it bothered him that they were worthy of her smiles, but she seemed to think that he was not. He always noticed how stiff she went when he showed up; she was extra-guarded around him. She always tried to be polite, but it was clear that she was irked that he was near her.

Gradually, though, she began to change. He did not understand why it was; she actually eventually just got comfortable with him being around. She expected him there and it was then that she started creeping by his defenses; he was doing the same with her. He actually lost sight of his mission somewhere along the line and did not even notice. Because he was often around her, they had somehow started dated without realizing it, but once they did, they continued on because they found out that they enjoyed each other's company.

They had been together ever since then, much to her father's dismay. His father was more accepting of the relationship, being married to a human himself, than her father was. His father did find it bothersome that Sesshomaru never formally claimed Kikyo as a demon would do his mate or that Sesshomaru never went through a human marriage; his father had done both.

Sesshomaru respected his father a great deal, but he looked to have some form of individuality, so he did not do either to avoid people comparing him to his father when it came to his personal life. Kikyo never brought up the subjects either. He suspected that she never mentioned such things because her father had once openly swore to mercilessly slaughter Sesshomaru if they did either of those things. Sesshomaru really had done nothing to even try to endear himself to that man; sometimes, he seemed to go out of his way to rub her father the wrong way. Sesshomaru just could not find it in him to respect someone that did not respect him, even if the person was his beloved's father.

One such incident had occurred on prom night when they were still in high school. He had purposely kept Kikyo out until some insane hour of the morning. By the time he returned her home, her father was practically foaming at the mouth and pacing a hole in the floor. The house was shaking from his spiritual powers running out of control in his body because of his anger and the only reason that he had not attacked the dog demon was because Kikyo assured him that nothing happened. At first, it seemed as if her father did not believe her because he knew what sorts of sordid things went on during prom night.

In all truth, nothing had happened, but the dog demon had been looking to get a charge out of her father and it did work. They had gone to the prom, were equally bored to death, attended the after party to be similarly bored, and then he had taken her to a scenic spot on the beach to watch the sunrise. It had been an enjoyable venture, even when her father wanted to kill him.

He got some strange kick out of infuriating her father. There was something about the way that Kikyo was such a daddy's girl, yet she went against his wishes when it came to Sesshomaru that the demon liked. It made him feel special. It let him know that he was precious to her and that made him feel several emotions that he never showed in public.

Sesshomaru had actually not done anything worthy of an all-out, horrible death in Kikyo's father's eyes until they were in college. He had waited two years to be with Kikyo; he had waited until she felt that she was absolutely certain that she was ready. He knew even then that he would never give any other female such time, devotion, and respect, but then again, very few people mattered to him like she did. He recollected the connection that he felt with her that night and how it confirmed that she was the only human, the only female for him. And yet, for the past year, he had been dating others.

To be honest, Sesshomaru could not even recall why he and Kikyo had broken up. It was a blur in his mind. He did not even know whose idea it was, but he had a creeping suspicion that it was his. He was the one full of bad ideas when it came to the both of them, but he could not see why he would even jokingly suggest such a thing. He replayed their relationship in his mind almost on the daily basis and he could not see what warranted their going their separate ways. The only thing in his mind in regards to their breakup was him moving out of their condo and then suddenly drowning himself in his work to gain a promotion, which he had done quite a while ago.

He had almost immediately missed Kikyo, though. It felt like there was a hole in his life that nothing could fill, except for her. He missed their lunch dates and little midnight snacks together where they would always have junk food and converse about almost anything until it was either time to go back to work or they needed to get some sleep. It actually did not occur to either of them to stay friends and at least keep their lunch dates, even though they terminated their relationship.

It was just that they had never really seen each other as friends. They had not realized that they had become friends long before they became lovers. They seemed to mistakenly think that their closeness and ease with each other was because they were lovers; it just happened that that was the one label that they were willing to put on each other. It was just that before getting into a relationship, they had both found each other irksome, for different reasons of course. But, they had been friends, the best of friends, and that aspect made being apart much harder than they imagined it would.

Sesshomaru sighed and asked himself why he had not at least tried to talk to Kikyo lately, if only for the intellectual stimulation. He had long ago noticed that most of the world's population was fools or idiots and he could not, for the sake his sanity, speak with them unless it was totally necessary. She was a breath of fresh air in a smoky world because of her mind. He had been wondering her opinion on so many matters, if she would agree or disagree with him on issues and for what reasons. He craved to speak with someone who had an opinion, did not mind sharing, and could easily back it up with sound logic and sensible facts. It was hard for him to find someone like that in the circles that he moved in.

As a demon noble, he attended many upper class functions and listening to them go on about something was so different than hearing Kikyo speak. He enjoyed bringing her with him just because she thought differently from all of those people, even him. He and Kikyo disagreed on things more often than not, but they had the most civilized and enlightening arguments. He liked watching her debate someone to the point where the person would withdraw to lick his wounded pride after throwing a petty insult her way or asking what a low class human like her knew about anything. She could be such a delightfully frustrating creature.

Also, the women that were around him tended to try to get on his good side, so they just agreed with his stance on matters. Kikyo offered opposition, intelligent opposition that was like a cool drink of water in a harsh desert. When they attended functions, women, actually people in general, would look at her as if she were completely and utterly mad if she dared to debate with him in front of them. Demons used to often tell him that he should get her under control, which only served to make her indignant and bring her calm and collected wrath onto them.

After a while, most people learned to just leave her be and let her be herself, which was a good way to go about things. Many people even enjoyed her company once they figured out that she was an independent little creature with sharp claws and teeth, mentally speaking. He still found himself attending functions only to be asked by someone where Kikyo was because they wished to speak with her.

Kikyo was different from everything that he was used to and he loved that about her. She was the perfect woman in his eyes, and he had often told her so. It was the only way that he could describe her; no other words would do. Of course, he was aware that she did not feel the same in regards to him. He knew that she questioned his perfection, but that was just another endearing quality of hers. She challenged him and a good portion of him loved that, craved that, and needed that. He seemed to need her, even though he had survived a whole year without her. He would never say so out loud, but he did not see how he had managed such a feat.

He imagined that Kikyo needed him too since she had given up dating and she still continued to travel to their café to sit alone. He could not figure out why they had not called each other; or more specifically, why she had not called him. Surely, she knew that he was miserable without her and she had to be the same. And then, his mind posed the question of why had he not called? He did not have an answer for himself. No answer that would have been satisfactory, anyway. All he could think of was that he had not called her because she had not called him.

Maybe his pride forbade him from calling her, as if he were crawling back to her, groveling to her. He did not want to discover she was actually able to get along without him or he just did not want to be the first to call because it would make him look weak. He would never do anything that might be perceived as weak, even though it was preventing him from at least interacting with Kikyo.

Sesshomaru sighed; he was damned if he did and damned if he did not. He then recalled that he had gotten a phone call minutes ago that he had promptly ignored. He decided to see who had called him and he was stunned to find that it was Kikyo. He hoped that she left a message, if only for the fact that it would allow him to hear her voice again. He did not even care what she might have said on the message; she could be reading the ingredients to a candy bar and it would have been all right with him. His facial expression remained neutral as he listened to the message; from the look his face, she might as well have been reading the ingredients to a candy bar.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: the end. What will become of the pair?


	3. Chapter 3

I don't own these characters.

Chapter 3

Sesshomaru silently entered the condo and stared at Kikyo. She was resting on their expense leather sofa with her laptop open and her fingers rapidly working the keys. He noticed that she was wearing her glasses; he was the only person on the planet that knew that she wore spectacles. She wore contacts when she went outside; he was often amused by her tiny touch of vanity. He decided to just take in the sight of her until she noticed him, which did not take too long.

"Sesshomaru," Kikyo said as she turned away from her computer to look at him. "Do you need something?" she asked in a very controlled tone. It took every ounce of self-control and all of the resolve that she possessed to not charge him and trap him in a fiery, exulting kiss.

"I do," he replied in his usual aloof tone. He definitely needed something and what he needed could only be found inside their home.

"Well, feel free to get whatever you need," she told him. She turned her attention back to her computer to avoid staring at him. She had forgotten that he was so handsome, even with the pictures of him around the apartment. The photographs were not the same as him in the flesh. She tried to ignore the flash of heat throughout her body and the increase in her heart rate, but it was difficult to concentrate on anything else.

Sesshomaru nodded and strolled over to her. He grabbed her notebook computer and moved it out of the way; he made sure to be careful with the device because he knew that she wrote articles using it. Before she could say anything in regard to asking what he was doing, he leaned down to kiss her. He nearly sighed in relief against her soft lips. He had kissed plenty of women during their year-long separation, but none of them were like kissing Kikyo. There was something soothing as well as passionate about touching her smooth, sweet lips.

Kikyo's lissome arms wrapped themselves around Sesshomaru's long, elegant neck without any commands from her brain. Her limbs had done the right thing as far as she was concerned. She felt a burning euphoria suffusing her entire being. There was almost a sensation of being drawn into him, fusing with him, and becoming one with him.

She pulled him closer to her, reveling in the feel of his mouth on hers. She realized now that she had missed him so much more than she had ever imagined; he would realize the same thing later on, but that was not on his mind at the moment. She missed everything about him so much; she never wanted him to leave again. She would never suggest that they separate again if he was there to stay.

It did not even cross her mind that he might not be there stay. She missed him so much and wanted him too much to consider the little details, like the fact that he might only be there for the day since he had not stated his business for being there. He, too, could not consider the little details, like she might ask him to leave at the end of the night; it was possible.

At the moment, Sesshomaru was running on his demon male instincts; sex first, details later. Right now, just the feel of her mouth was overrunning his senses. He could not even imagine what it would feel like to make love to her, but he _would_ discover it soon enough. He lifted Kikyo up and wrapped her legs around his waist; she locked herself into position to hold herself up and that freed up his hands. One of his hands went to rest on her rump to help support her and to also fondle her. His other hand busied itself by working its way into her shirt to touch that creamy flesh that he missed so much.

Touching her through her clothing was almost too much for him. His mind reeled and it felt like he would forget to breathe because even breathing was not as important as knowing all of his precious Kikyo. It took every ounce of strength and willpower to not take her against the wall. She deserved better than a hard rut.

He carried her to the bedroom in the back and he hardly took in the scene. If he had noticed anything around the room, he would have realized that she had hardly changed anything at all. As wanting as he was of the whole situation and wanting to get down to business, he gently placed her on the bed and he calmly freed her of her clothes. He never let his instincts take over to the point where he might do something to harm her.

-8-8-8-8-

Sesshomaru pulled Kikyo close to him; their nude, sweaty bodies needed to be as close as possible in his opinion. The dog demon moved her bangs from sticking to her forehead and nearly covering her eyes. She looked at him and she smiled a little; she hoped that he was staying.

Kikyo could only think about how much she wanted him there with her always; she was also trying her best to fight off sleep. She was not accustomed to the workout that he had just put her through anymore. It had not occurred to him that she might not be able to handle hours of coupling, but she had. As exhausted as she was, she had missed him and longed for him too much to stop.

"Are you all right?" Sesshomaru asked as she snuggled into his shoulder. He stared down at her, just loving the sight of his little woman. There was no other woman like her. He doubted that there were would be another like her, so he was going to keep her close to him and never look for a replacement again.

"Of course. Why wouldn't I be?" she countered unable to keep the smile off of her face. Even though he was far from perfect, he was still the only man for her. He cared about her, respected her, and loved her; she did not need anything else from him, even though he would and did give her so much more.

Sesshomaru only shook his head. He knew that she was all right just from looking at her and he knew that she would confirm that, but he still felt it necessary to verbally check. He had to make sure that his little Kikyo was as good as she could possibly be. He needed to make sure that she was content. It was his duty.

"You are going to stay, aren't you?" Kikyo inquired out of the blue; well, it seemed out of the blue to him. It was eating away at her brain, though. She wanted to know that when she fell asleep and then woke up, he would still be there. She needed to know that he was going to be there with her forever because she knew that she was never going to get over him.

"Stay?" he echoed in a confused tone. He did not understand why she would ask such a thing.

"Here … with me," she clarified her question.

"Of course," he answered the obvious. Why would he not stay with her? She was everything that he desired and required in life. He never wanted to be apart from her again. He would stay with her until the day that he died.

"Good," she sighed and she was now completely relaxed because her mind was at ease. She nuzzled her cheek into his shoulder and Sesshomaru understood that she missed him just as much as he missed her.

"I was missed, I suppose," he remarked. Every now and then, he could tease her, which was something else that let him know that she was special to him. He would never think to playfully tease anyone else except for her.

"Don't get too full of yourself, demon," she taunted him while running a hand lightly over his pale torso. They both supposed that they were probably the palest couple in existence.

"Kikyo, let's never do this again," he said while tenderly massaging her back. He enjoyed touching her almost as much as he enjoyed having her touch him; he was reveling in the fact that she was lovingly caressing his chest.

"Do what?" she inquired, keeping in a yawn. She was trying her best to keep her eyes open, but the way that she was touching her was making it very hard to do so. His touch was so soothing and she was so wonderfully worn out. She just wanted to fall out right on him and then she would get the great sight of waking up to him.

"Break up," he answered.

"Yes, let's never do that again," she concurred.

It was a foolish thing that they had done and they had not helped by acting as if they could get along without each other. They should have stopped pretending to respect the other's wishes and just had said something earlier to make the pain stop. Instead, they just suffered alone, which was so like them, they realized.

"Whose idea was this, anyway? Did I suggest it?" Sesshomaru asked curiously. Through out their relationship, he hated to admit it, even silently to himself, but almost always when they did something bizarre or regrettable, it was upon his suggestion. He did not see why he would think of something so ridiculous as to suggest that they break up, though. But then again, he did not see why she would suggest such a thing either.

"No, it was my idea," she admitted. She did not think that it was a bad idea, but she thought that they dragged it out much longer than it needed to be. They should have taken care of business and then went right back to each other.

"Why would you suggest it and why did I agree?" he inquired in an almost baffled tone. He frowned slightly and scratched his chin in thought with his free hand.

Kikyo laughed a little bit and reminded him of how it all had occurred. She told him about how they had been so focused on their careers that they hardly noticed each other, and even when they did, all they did was glance at each other before going about their business. They just had not been there for each other at the time in any way, shape, or form. To prove her point, she asked Sesshomaru if he could remember the last time that they had made love before just now. He could not answer the question.

"How is that possible?" Sesshomaru wondered aloud.

The golden-eyed male could not believe that he allowed something as insignificant as work take priority over his beloved Kikyo. He must have been insane a year ago, he concluded. It was the only thing that could explain to him why he would treat work as if it was more important than his dearest, precious Kikyo. After all, work was just work and Kikyo was _Kikyo_. She was the world, the sun, the moon, and the stars to him; she was everything that ever was and would ever be as far as he was concerned. Work should always be damned when it came to her. Maybe he had taken her for granted back then; after all, they had been together for ten years. Maybe he had gotten too used to her in his mind and did not realize just what he had.

The petite female considered the same case for herself. She probably took Sesshomaru for granted, which was why she had been able to suggest that they split up. She had grown too used to him it seemed. She had not had an idea of what she had until he was gone. Well, she would never do something so idiotic again, especially after seeing what it was like without him. She never wanted to be without him again.

They both silently vowed to never take each other for granted again. They never wanted a moment to come up again where breaking up seemed like a good idea. They never wanted to be apart again. They were made for each other it seemed and they just accepted that; it was the smart thing to do.

"Kikyo," Sesshomaru said while moving his hand from her back to her arm. He caressed her arm now, just enjoying the feel of her skin. She felt so soft and he wanted nothing more than to stay there, touching her for as long as possible. If he could just lie in bed with her for the rest of their lives, he would do that.

"Hmm?" she replied with her eyes barely open. He really was not helping her in trying to stay awake by continuing to touch her in such ways. She figured that it would only take a few minutes for her to fall into a deep, coma-like sleep.

"I am going to formally claim you," he informed her. He had to do it, even if her father flipped over it. It would show that he was never going to give her up and that no one else could ever have her. She was his and he was going to make sure that everyone knew that.

Kikyo, being an expert on demons and the culture of demons, understood exactly what her lover meant. She guessed that it was a good way to make sure that they never broke up again. She would be off the market as far as anyone with demon blood would be concerned. It would take a very strong willed demon to try to pick her up because the demon would be able to sense that she was with Sesshomaru and it showed Sesshomaru's deep and complete devotion to her.

The only thing that she worried about was her father. He would be angry; he might even go into a murderous rage when he found out. He honest and truly loathed Sesshomaru and nothing was going to change that fact. She supposed that she could talk to him and help him at least accept what had to happen. It was necessary.

"Not tonight," the raven-haired woman said; she was too tired to go through any more activity.

"No, but soon," he replied. He could tell that she was wiped out. He had forgotten that she did not have the same level of stamina as he did. He did admire that she was hanging on to speak with him.

"All right," she agreed. She was rather flattered that he finally brought up the fact that he was going to claim her. She had thought that they would go on as they were, never making a commitment to each other beyond what they felt in their hearts. How they were worked for her, but she would love to been officially his and for him to be officially hers.

"And we will get married," he added firmly.

Kikyo was very stunned by that declaration. Sesshomaru typically showed no interest, if not absolute disgust, for anything that was considered "human." So, it shocked her that he would want to get married since that was something only humans did. Demons claimed each other, which was something like a marriage, but it was much more personal and there were no certificates, rings, or other physical materials involved. It was not something that other people witnessed either. Being claimed was a wholly spiritual and emotional experience between lovers.

"You are supposed to propose marriage, not state it," Kikyo informed Sesshomaru once she got over her astonishment. She knew that if he was going to do it, he would want to do it right, but he would also want to do it his way.

"Propose it?" he repeated as if he did not comprehend such a thing, which of course he did. But, he made orders and statements, even with Kikyo. She, unlike everyone else, had the will and option to not comply with his commands.

"Yes, you should offer to marry me, not declare it without my consent. You must request such a thing and then wait for my response," she explained.

"Any other rules to go with this human ceremony?" he inquired with some frustration in his voice. He often wondered why Kikyo could not have just been born a demon. It would have saved him so much annoyance and made things so much simpler.

"Well, in many places, the man gives the woman a ring to openly show their engagement," she replied with a tiny smile. She liked when he was irked by something so frivolous.

"As a signal to let other men know to stay away from you," he guessed. It made the best sense to him.

Kikyo could not help it; she laughed just a little bit. His mind worked like such a demon, or maybe his mind worked like such a male. Most men probably did like the idea of an engagement ring because it signaled to other men that they needed to stay away or there would be problems.

"If that's the way that you wish to look at it, all right," Kikyo conceded.

"Then we will get you a ring tomorrow," he proclaimed. The sooner they got a ring, the better in his opinion. He did not want humans checking out his woman anymore than he wanted demons doing such a thing. He wanted the entire population to get it that she was taken and they had better leave her be.

"I have yet to confirm that I wish to marry you, sweetheart," she pointed out just to tease him a bit.

"Why wouldn't you?" he asked in a puzzled tone, arching an eyebrow.

"Because you haven't asked," she reminded him. She was smiling a little now.

"Oh," Sesshomaru said with a nod. "Dearest Kikyo, would you do me the grand honor of becoming my wife and mate?" he proposed.

"Of course, sweetheart," Kikyo replied without hesitating.

They shared a short, sweet kiss to seal the deal. The plans pleased both of them and they both thought that they should have approached the notions a long time ago. It seemed that his father had had a point, Sesshomaru silently yielded.

"Now, might I have the honor of being able to go to sleep?" she requested with a small yawn.

"Goodnight, beloved," he replied.

"Goodnight," she said and before she drifted off to sleep, in a mumble, she informed Sesshomaru that it was nice to have him back. He actually smiled and leaned down to kiss her forehead. They were best when they were together.

-8-8-8-8-

The end.


End file.
